MONTANA SEXTET is now as of this week in the shops flipped by Mick Clark’s new “vibes” (but not “sax”) remix, retitled ‘Heavy Heavy Vibes‘ — the eventual follow-up incidentally will be their older ‘Philly Hits Medley’, which failed to impress at the time on import . . . I Level’s commercial 12in tracks will not necessarily be as previously announced on extremely limited test-pressed promo, final selection having been due for decision on Monday . . . Jonny Chingas is being rushed out here in about a fortnight . . . Forrest ‘Rock The Boat’ literally exploded last weekend in London, thanks largely to Capital Radio’s Greg Edwards — though why jocks took so long to go on such an obvious pre-sold winner is a mystery . . . Holborn’s City Sounds based Greyhound label/distribution set-up is putting out the much sought legendary ‘In The Street’ LP by Prince Charles . . . Bronze has signed the Next Plateau label for UK release, debuting next week with C-Bank ‘One More Shot‘ — which, exciting intro apart, is not the most danceable of rhythms . . . RECORD MIRROR picked up the “Trade Publication” prize last Monday at the well attended Thames Valley Disc Jockeys Association’s Shownite ’83 in Hounslow — thanks for your votes . . . Hackney-based Peter Saunders launched his artsy multimedia dance/disco troupe Coruscation at Hounslow, prior to its first proper showcase this Saturday (29) at Birmingham’s Bourneville Club . . . August should see a “major sponsored fund raising event” in southern Scotland involving about 10 Scottish jocks — any wishing to participate (it’s likely to get national media coverage) should be prepared to do strenuous risky stunts like repeated parachute jumps, contact Neil Fincham or Raymond Tuzi at Edinburgh’s Mad Hatters (031-225 4343) . . . US Dance/Disco chart-toppers since Christmas have been Weather Girls, Thompson Twins ‘Lies‘, Michael Jackson LP, the top Block LP remaining Marvin Gaye, whose 10 week run with ‘Sexual Healing’ as top Black single was ended by Michael Jackson/Paul McCartney (no’s 2 & 3 last week being Sonny Charles and Tyrone Davis — classy soul still lives!) . . . Phyllis Hyman and now Dionne Warwick ‘Live From Her Majesty’s’ — and what a truly beautiful musical instrument Dionne’s voice is . . . Holland’s Dureco Benelux company say they’ll sue any unauthorised use of their Smurf characters, presumably in response to all the Smurf dance records (which surely don’t owe much to those petrol promoting little blue people?) . . . ‘E.T. Smurph Home’? . . . Rayners Lane Record & Disco Centre’s switched on salesperson Paul Mohamed threatens to supply us with regular male beauty hints, straight from his “macho counter”! . . . Atari’s excitingly realistic new Fuji Racetrack video game incorporates an electronically generated phrase which sounds just like the Buffalo Gals “oh that scratching is making me itch” . . . Steve Allen & Jerry Little kick off their new monthly Friday’s Club at Peterborough’s Fleet Centre this Friday (28) with a cheap drink happy hour between 8-9pm . . . Paul Hazelle starts this Saturday (29) alone at Guildford Newlands Corner’s Straceys, where he and Phil Jay plus guests still jazz-funk Fridays . . . Dave Smith & Darren Fogel at London’s Samantha’s in New Burlington Street (off Regent Street, next to the temporarily closed Rockerfellas late-nite eaterie) offer free admission to anyone carrying a copy of this Disco’s column next Monday and Wednesday (31, 2) . . . Phil Mitchell (Newcastle-upon-Tyne Julies) recommends local wine bar Legends, where John Myers plays nice mellow stuff in pre-nightclub hours . . . PM Dinnis — who wonders if he’s related to Exeter’s Chris Dinnis — souls Beckenham’s over-21’s only McCormacks at The Clockhouse, open Thurs-thru-Sunday . . . Tom Wilson returns to souling Edinburgh at the Northumberland Hotel on Thursdays . . . Flash Gordon (Keynsham 5557, that’s Keynsham — K-E-Y-N-S-H-A M), who’s been jocking successfully in Bristol and now Bath, fancies a move to the London area . . . London man-about-town hoaxster/Soul On Sound interviewer Chris Ellis (01-629 5897) is also after a regular club/bar jocking slot . . . Nic Wakefield (Sidmouth Carinas) picked up on the Ex Tras off Soul On Sound and it’s now exploded for him . . . I’m glad many other jocks, especially on radio, dislike Central Line’s remixed ‘Nature Boy’ intro — but in chart terms the general herd seem to have looked no further than the official A-side instead of flipping for the superior uncluttered original (’83 Mix) US version . . . Rockers Revenge ‘The Harder They Come’ could almost be another ‘Brown Girl In The Ring’, heaven forbid! . . . New York Citi Peech Boys didn’t hang around for long — who was that masked man? . . . I mentioned to Theo Loyla, whose departure from the Bridge Country Club near Canterbury must have been a bit traumatic, that the venue’s current jock Dave Stodart is sending us charts and Theo very magnanimously said the place is now packed . . . Nick Aravis now works alone, without Gary Kent, at Hornchurch Daniels (Monday under-18’s/Wednesday over-21’s — tough if you’re 19 or 20!), as well as Tuesdays at Leyton’s Lion & Key, Fri/Saturdays at Romford’s Tudor Lodge Wine Bar . . . Sandy Martin does a late night soul oldies session every Wednesday at Swindon’s Vadims Club . . . London’s gay faves the Trollettes are every Friday at Kings Cross’s Euston Tavern and Saturday at Stratford’s The Pigeons . . . Adrian (Bournemouth Adams) is experimenting with his own synthesizer and drum box to beef up various dated type records, like Scherrie Payne . . . Set The Tone’s ‘Let Loose‘ B-side as anticipated is getting gay play . . . Cori Josias and Spencer Jones’s “vibrant” ‘Garage Mix’ blend terrifically together . . . Prince Charles ‘The Jungle Stomp‘ goes great with Peech Boys ‘Don’t Make Me Wait’, says John Tracy (Manchester Hacienda Tues/Sat, Sheffield Pennys Wed, Sheffield Leadmill Stylus Videotheque Fri) . . . Bob Heather (Southampton Top Rank Ice Rink) says Xavier ‘Work The Sucker To Death’ mixes superbly out of the end of Set The Tone ‘Dance Sucker’ . . . John Cecchini & Pez tonight (Thursday 27) start funking the Golden Guinea weekly — I think that’s in Birkenhead, it’s certainly on the Wirral (I’m not clairvoyant) . . . Jinx Joynson (Wallasey) hasn’t a copy himself but has seen Bobby Nunn ‘She’s Just A Groupie‘ get such a good reaction he reckons it ought to be on more than just promo 12in — bit late now, though . . . I don’t appear to be receiving all the promos sent to me, something being wrong with the mail in my area, so apologies if records aren’t reviewed immediately . . . Anne Marie Bevan (Dublin), bad luck, but my Spandau Ballet card got thrown out after Christmas — sorry! . . . DO IT IN THE MIX!

THE BIZ are a carefully assembled glamorous British answer to Shalamar, though with the different sexual ratio of Yasmin Evans, Austin Howard and Suzette Smithson — almost a black Bucks Fizz! — whose debut 113bpm ‘Falling‘ 3-track 12in has already sold out on white label advantage pressing but is due this week again in its fully remixed final form from the new Midas label. If your club gets offered them for a PA, grab ’em — as we discovered at Gullivers last Saturday, they really do do “the biz”!

HOT VINYL

THE GAP BAND: ‘Outstanding’ (Total Experience TEX 001, via Phonogram).
Powerfully propelled by an ultra-infectious ‘Don’t Stop The Music’ beat (they mix), this dynamite nagging 99bpm 12in jiggly jogger has great soulful vocal work weaving through the insistent groove and, arguably the guys’ best ever, seems likely to be a huge hit what with their UK visit ‘n all.

THE BAND AKA II: ‘Joy’ (US Bouvier BO-0101-5).
Hailed by many as the best thing to happen in soul music since Bessie Smith, this shuffling 114bpm 12in side to side swinger in its present form seems flawed to me, the vocal side going on interminably without any variation while the marvellous sax which graced ‘Grace’ is only on the (to my mind) preferable instrumental-with-chorus flip. A remix combining the two — now, that would be a killer!

JAZZY DEE: ‘Get On Up’ (US Laurie DM 503).
A welcome return for the vintage label (Dion’s early ’60s hits were on it) with a burbling somewhat monotonous 117bpm 12in chix chanted and chap sung jiggly groove which ends eventually in a rap, with datedly “jazz-funky” instrumental flip.

PURE ENERGY: ‘Spaced Out’ (US Prism PDS 455).
“Chipmunk” intro-ing countdown and interruptions lend Smurf (ooh hush my mouth) appeal to a good simple jaggedly tripping 114¼bpm 12in semi-electrophonic disco bumbler, great out of the Ex Tras, and possibly best in its sparser ‘Party Mix‘ rather than the chick-sung A-side.

THE JONESES: ‘Sugar Pie Guy’ (US Mercury 422-810309-1 M-1).
With a catalogue number like that, what’s the ZIP code? Anyway, here’s a must for all the soul revivalists, four brand new remixes (remakes?) of the guys classic mid ’70s “spudadah spudadah” vocal group gem all on one 12in, the ‘Club Mix’ (not necessarily best) being 122-123-126-127bpm.

TONEY LEE: ‘Reach Up’ (TMT TMTT 2).
Chunkily thudding 115bpm combination of Steve Arrington-ish shuffle and kick chant with Rockers Revenge rhythm, on 3-track 12in with possibly punchier ‘Dub’ and new radio length ‘Quick’ mixes, the effect somehow being joyless and dead until it reaches the more rhythmically busy last half.

INSTANT FUNK: ‘No Stoppin’ That Rockin’ (US Salsoul SG385).
Although sounding slower their vocoder started sparse snapper slots into the Soul Sonic Patrol orbiter groove, on 4-track 12in with Tom Moulton’s mix at 127½bpm and the other variations by Sergio Munzibai at 128bpm, creating a strange tension because really everything about it is quite lethargic. Also now about on Dutch import ahead of the US pressings is their new album ‘V’ (Rams Horn RAMSH 5030), on which for me the stunning standout is the ultra-soulful slow 63bpm ‘Smack Dab In The Middle‘ — wow, it wails! — while also subtly soulful with possible revivalist appeal are the 123bpm ‘You’re Gonna Get Yours‘ and 124bpm ‘I’ll Be Good To You‘, although the routine funky 101½-102bpm ‘Who Took Away The Funk’ will be easier to use, frantic being the 130bpm ‘Easy Come Easy Go’, 141bpm ‘Blazin’, 146bpm ‘A Hard Day’s Night‘ (yes, the Fabs!).

LA FAMILE: ‘Dancer’ (Chequers DR 001).
Pleasant if not particularly incisive 0-115-116-117-118bpm 12in attempt by a well-connected UK line-up to emulate one of those classy chick-led US drifters usually sung by a Patti Austin or Jones Girls, say.

INTRIGUE: ‘I Like It’ (Pressure PRESS D-1003).
Pleasantly put together if unexceptional 114bpm 12in jogger with a “money crazy” message, on the label which gave us Norman Giscombe Junior’s debut two years ago.

Related

I remember that Atari racing game which we had in my local and which unfortunately half my friends seemed to spend half of 1983 playing on I was bored after a couple of games:-(

Jazzy Dee was another that everyone seemed to have on their car stereos that year – sort of rap but still with a slightly jazz-funky feel to it – I can still recite most of the rap in it all these years later – “I’m the rapamatician and the man of the year and all the other MCs can disappear….” etc etc.

“Outstanding” is one of the records that everyone knows and was played on the London pirates for years but wasn’t that big a pop hit at the time – Kenny Thomas’s version in the 90s was a bigger crossover.

These are unbelievably nostalgic times for me. Nice long hot summer in 1983 too made it even better.

That text about The Biz – which I believe accompanied a photo in RM – mentions two names who’d have greater success later in the 80s: Austin Howard was one third of trio Ellis Beggs & Howard (the ‘Beggs’ being former Kajagoogoo bassist Nick Beggs); and, even more successful, Yasmin Evans was Yazz – recently seen on BBC Four’s TOTP 88 re-runs.